What Do Bill O’Reilly and the U.S. Congress Have in Common?
CBS reports that “[f]our Jewish subway riders who wished other people ‘Happy Hanukkah’ were pelted with
anti-Semitic remarks before being beaten, police and prosecutors said. The incident was being investigated as a possible hate crime. . . . The four were on a train in lower Manhattan on Friday night, during the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lights, when they were approached by a group of 10 people who offered holiday greetings. The victims responded, ‘Happy Hanukkah,’ and then were assaulted by the larger group, police said Tuesday. . . . Police caught up with the train one stop later, in Brooklyn, and arrested eight men and two women, ages 19 and 20. They were arraigned Saturday on charges of assault, menacing, riot, harassment and disorderly conduct, the Brooklyn district attorney’s office said. The case was being handled by the office’s civil rights bureau, and charges could be upgraded to hate crimes, prosecutors said.
A Muslin student, Hassan Askari, came to the defense of the four Jewish subway riders. Mr. Askani attempted to fight off the attackers giving the Jewish students time to call 911. What provokes unstable or malevolent people to engage in such anti-semitic behavior? One answer might be a perverse, out-of control, cable-driven media. Watch and listen to the Bully-In-Chief, Bill O’Reilly, whose anti-semitic role in “defending” the so-called “War of Christmas” poisons an environment already pregnant with anti-semitic attitudes just barely hidden beneath the surface of American culture.
Then consider whether the United States Congress contributes to this climate of anti-semitism by issuing a non-binding resolution stating:
Resolved, That the House of Representatives– (1) recognizes the Christian faith as one of the great religions of the world; (2) expresses continued support for Christians in the United States and worldwide; (3) acknowledges the international religious and historical importance of Christmas and the Christian faith; (4) acknowledges and supports the role played by Christians and Christianity in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization; (5) rejects bigotry and persecution directed against Christians, both in the United States and worldwide; and (6) expresses its deepest respect to American Christians and Christians throughout the world.
Benign, you say. Maybe. While it is true that Congress has issued similar non-binding resolutions concerning other religions, where in the Constitution is Congress authorized to engage in issuing non-binding resolutions of any sort? The text? The intent of the framers? The structure of the Constitution? Where? Congress plays politics with our normative environment–what ordinary citizens regard as acceptable to say and do–and ordinary citizens pay the politics for such pandering. Both the Jewish victims and their attackers ultimately (if only indirectly) pay this price. American political culture needs a comprehensive cleansing of O’Reilly-type bigotry and congressional pandering. American citizens need to take back control of both our media and politics.
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